Oropharyngeal cancer is a disease in which malignant cells form in the tissue of oropharynx. Oropharynx is a middle part of the throat that includes the base of the tongue, the tonsils, the soft palate, and the walls of the pharynx.[1] Oropharyngeal cancers can be divided into two types, HPV-positive, which are related to human papillomavirus infection, and HPV-negative cancers, which are usually linked to alcohol or tobacco use.[2]

Prognosis

Patients with HPV-mediated oropharyngeal cancer tend to have higher survival rates.[2] The prognosis for people with oropharyngeal cancer depends on the age and health of the person and the stage of the disease. It is important for people with oropharyngeal cancer to have follow-up exams for the rest of their lives as cancer can occur in nearby areas. In addition, it is important to eliminate risk factors such as smoking and drinking alcohol, which increase the risk for second cancers.[1]

Cancer is any size and has spread to one lymph node that is larger than 30 millimetres but not larger than 60 millimetres on the same side of the neck as the cancer or to more than one lymph node, none larger than 60 millimetres, on one of both sides of the neck.

Stage 4B

Cancer surrounds the main artery in the neck or has spread to bones in the jaw or skull, to muscle in the side of the jaw or to the upper part of the throat behind the nose and may have spread to nearby lymph nodes

Oropharyngeal squamous cell carcinomas

Oropharyngeal squamous cell carcinomas (OSCC) is a type of head and neck cancer that begins in the oropharynx, the middle part of the throat that includes the soft palate, the base of the tongue, the tonsils and the side and back wall of the throat.[6] Squamous cell cancers of the tonsils are more strongly associated with human papillomavirus infection than are cancers of other regions of the head and neck.